Avail: Next-Generation Blockchain Infrastructure Empowering Developers

The unique data availability and strong security capabilities of Avail empower developers to create more efficient and fraud-resistant blockchain applications, whether employing zero-knowledge or fraud-resistant techniques.

Avail prioritizes the ordering and publication of transactions while enabling users to verify the availability of block data without needing to download all blocks, thanks to its foundational principles.

Let's delve a bit deeper.

Layer 2 Solutions

In traditional blockchain networks, full nodes execute all transactions to ensure integrity and security. However, despite being secure, this model limits efficiency and scalability due to extensive processing requirements. To address these limitations, Layer 2 (L2) solutions emerged, such as those seen in Ethereum, shifting much of the transaction processing off the main chain (Layer 1) to deliver enhanced performance.

Rollups aim to mitigate these challenges by executing transactions off-chain and then submitting batched results back to the main chain. This approach significantly reduces the burden on Layer 1, leading to lower operational costs and transaction fees, thus providing a more scalable solution for blockchain networks.

However, despite their advantages, L2 solutions face challenges, particularly in ensuring data availability and transaction integrity efficiently and cost-effectively.

Rollups fall into two main categories:

Optimistic Rollups:

Operate on the assumption that transactions are valid unless proven otherwise. This means that when transactions are aggregated off-chain and submitted to the block, they are assumed to be valid until proven otherwise.

The optimism at the core of this model lies in assuming the validity of transactions by default. This assumption, until proven otherwise, serves as a process facilitated by anti-fraud mechanisms. If a transaction is disputed and found to be fraudulent, it is reverted, ensuring the security of the network.

ZK Rollups:

Focus on security and data integrity by requiring clear cryptographic proofs of transaction validity before aggregating them and submitting them to the block.

Data Availability (DA)

In blockchain systems, it's crucial for network nodes to validate the transaction data of each block. The challenge arises when nodes attempt to verify new blocks by downloading and validating transaction data. The essence of this challenge lies not only in publishing data but also in ensuring its availability across the network, guaranteeing reliable distribution.
The data availability problem is a critical issue in blockchain and distributed ledger technologies, focusing on the necessity of making all transaction data publicly and verifiably available across the network. This challenge is an inseparable part of blockchain integrity and security.

Moving on to a more detailed discussion on the sections mentioned above.

Taking Layer 2 Data Off-Chain

1. Validiums: ZK Rollups + Off-Chain DA
2. Optimums: Optimistic Rollups + Off-Chain DA
3. Volitions: ZK Rollups + Validiums
4. Sovereign Rollups: Independent rollups with private DA and security models

Detailed explanations regarding these will be provided at the bottom, in the second part of the tweet, in the form of images. If you refer to these images, you will access comprehensive information about these headings, ensuring both coherence and ease of understanding.
Moving data availability off-chain naturally brings additional trust dependencies due to reliance on external data managers.

Avail addresses these trust assumptions by providing a robust and reliable off-chain data availability mechanism. This integration significantly enhances the integrity and accessibility of transaction data while minimizing reliance on trust-based data management, thus enhancing the overall security and efficiency of various scaling solutions.

By separating data hosting, execution, and verification, Avail optimizes the efficiency and effectiveness of each component as a direct result of modularity.

Avail Data Hosting and Ordering Layer (DA Layer)

The DA Layer is tasked with receiving and ordering transaction data. This layer does not concern itself with transaction execution but is dedicated to storing and ensuring the availability of data. The DA Layer is crucial in ensuring that the system does not rely solely on each full node for transaction execution, thus alleviating bottlenecks common in traditional blockchain architectures.

Avail Execution Layer

It provides an interface with the DA Layer to access ordered transactions. It then processes these transactions and generates necessary checkpoints, claims, or proofs. These are then linked to the Verification/Dispute Resolution Layer (DR Layer), which serves as the security backbone of the Avail ecosystem.

Avail Verification/Dispute Resolution Layer (DR Layer)

It serves as the decision-making component where checkpoints or proofs sent by the Execution Layer are verified. This ensures that only valid state transitions are accepted within the network.

The Avail network consists of three types of nodes:

1. Full Nodes:
2. These nodes download and verify block accuracy but do not participate in the consensus process. Their role is crucial in maintaining network integrity.
3. Validator Nodes:
4. These nodes are at the heart of Avail's consensus mechanism. They are responsible for block creation, deciding on transaction inclusion, and maintaining order. Validator nodes are incentivized through participation in consensus and form the basis of transaction processing in the DA Layer.
5. Light Clients:
6. Operating with limited resources, light clients rely on block headers to connect to the network. They can query full nodes for specific transaction data when needed and are essential for maintaining a decentralized and accessible network.

Avail prefers the Nominated Proof-of-Stake (NPoS) consensus model for its scalability and energy efficiency advantages. It utilizes Substrate's BABE/GRANDPA consensus, offering a blend of fast block production and provable finality.

By combining erasure coding, KZG polynomial commitments, and data availability sampling, Avail redefines blockchain scalability. Serving as Layer 1, it offers scalable data hosting capabilities, especially suitable for Rollups, without the need for transaction execution.
The aim of Avail is to provide a fast and secure data and consensus layer that encompasses everything needed to launch a sustainable blockchain.

Avail enables developers to build projects in various fields such as DeFi, memes, NFTs, gaming, RWA, Internet of Things, and AI.

Modular-Innovative

Building modern applications directly on monolithic blockchains is excessively expensive and slow. With a MODULAR approach, blockchain networks can now scale and adapt efficiently and affordably.

Avail features a modular structure consisting of individually replaceable components. With modularity, developers can select and shape the most suitable parts for their projects, offering a flexible architecture akin to using pieces of a puzzle.

Think of the modular approach as choosing specific pieces from a set rather than acquiring the entire set as a whole. You don't need the entirety of a blockchain; rather, you can select the components that best suit your needs.

Legacy blockchains: monolithic
New trend: modular

For those aiming to develop DApps, applications, projects, or tokens, there's no need to preload their own validator clusters. Applications running on Avail inherit the foundational layer's shared security. You can build your project on a foundational layer that allows seamless integration with any modular stack.

Next-generation applications are optimized for minimal trust, independent rollups, and blockchain applications based on zero-knowledge or fraud-resistant principles. Avail facilitates their creation with increased efficiency and convenience.

Scalability:

Avail allows Layer 2 and Layer 3 chains to publish data off-chain. It achieves this rapidly and affordably through its technology.

Flexible-Fast

By supporting various blockchain execution environments, Avail enables developers to innovate as they see fit, creating a blockchain within minutes.

Cost-effective:

Validiums, which send transaction data to Avail, are expected to save up to 90% on gas fees compared to rollups that send data directly to Ethereum.

Secure:

Avail enables lightweight clients to easily verify data availability through sampling over the peer-to-peer network and directly inherits security and verification at the full node level from the DA layer.

Efficient:

Avail's robust DA API allows for rapid replication of sovereign rollups without compromising efficiency.

Compatible:

Avail enables inter-chain transactions and data sharing through tools that facilitate communication between different networks, making inter-network interactions possible.

Team:

Co-founders: Polygon-MATIC origins.
Anurag Arjun: Co-founder of Polygon Labs.
Prabal Banerjee: Former research lead at Polygon.
You can research the rest of the team on their website. They have a large team.

Partnerships include but are not limited to:

• Polygon
• OP
• Starkware
• $DYM
• Madara
• Manta
• Altlayer

You can explore the details of these partnerships and their ecosystem on their website and official social media channels. Make sure to verify and examine such details.
This project was introduced in 2021 and is relatively new. It hasn't gained traction yet.

Some strategic partnerships are listed below. This is not an exhaustive list, and you should verify these partnerships through their website or other official sources.

Once it hits the market, it will start garnering attention. Let's secure our position early.
Airdrop strategies should be carefully considered. Currently, airdrops are one of the most effective marketing tools.